“The United Kingdom and the United States are the closest of friends and allies, and the special relationship between our people remains strong and enduring,” Biden said in the statement, obtained by CBS News. “I look forward to continuing our close collaboration with the UK Government, as well as our Allies and partners around the world, on a number of important priorities,” the president continued. “This includes maintaining a strong and unified approach to support the people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s brutal war on their democracy and Russia’s taking responsibility for its actions.” Biden’s statement is a sharp change from those made by his predecessors in response to the resignations of previous British prime ministers. In 2016, when David Cameron resigned as prime minister after the Brexit referendum, President Barack Obama called him “a great friend and partner on the world stage” in a speech at Stanford University’s Global Entrepreneurship Summit. Three years later, President Donald Trump said he felt “bad” for Johnson’s predecessor, Theresa May, after she resigned after failing to reconcile Parliament with the proposed deal to allow the UK to leave the EU. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson addresses the nation as he announces his resignation. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images President Biden gave outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson the cold shoulder in an initial statement reacting to Johnson’s resignation Valeria Mongelli/Bloomberg via Getty Images “I feel bad for Teresa. I like it a lot,” Trump told reporters at the time. “She is a good woman. He worked very hard. She is very strong. He decided to do something that some were surprised, some not. It is for the good of her country. But I really like it.” In 2007, when Tony Blair handed over the reins of power to his longtime lieutenant Gordon Brown, President George W. Bush hailed Blair as “a political figure who can think beyond the horizon.” “I’ve found him to be a man of his word, which is sometimes rare in the political circles I’m in,” Bush said at the time, according to Reuters. Biden’s statement is a sharp change from those made by his predecessors in response to the resignations of previous British prime ministers. Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images “When Tony Blair tells you something, as we say in Texas, you can take it to the bank,” Bush added. It is unclear why Biden made no mention of Johnson in the statement. The White House did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment. Johnson, who has been in office since 2019, said Thursday that he will remain in his role until a successor is named, a process that could take several weeks. The prime minister’s resignation came after a series of controversies eroded confidence in his leadership – most notably the “Partygate” scandal, which saw Johnson fined for breaching the government’s own self-imposed COVID-19 lockdown rules of.
